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When Master Bok-Nam Park talks about the footwork in the Ba Gua Zhang of Lu Shui-Tian, he always says “Some aspects of Ba Gua are like gold, and some aspects are like diamonds.  Our footwork is the diamonds of Ba Gua Zhang”.  While the entire art of Ba Gua Zhang is extremely effective for fighting application, our footwork is very special and completely unique to our art.  Ba Gua stepping and circle walking both take years to learn and utilize effectively, and a great deal longer to master.  The purpose of this article is to serve as an introduction and show how the different aspects of the footwork are utilized together in fighting.

 

A lot of styles becoming popular right now focus on grappling and submission holds.  These are fine for a one-on-one situation in a controlled environment.  It is not feasible to think you can shoot in or slam someone on the concrete and not be injured yourself.  In addition, ground fighting with a single person in a street environment opens you up to attack from any of your opponent’s friends.  In a real fight, consistent mobility and environmental awareness are your true allies.  After all, if you can’t be caught you can’t be hit.  The footwork we utilize allows us to maintain mobility and deal with multiple people and more real-world situations.  We are never stationary, and our strikes and Chin Na are utilized in combination with the footwork to quickly finish an opponent and move on to the next person or escape the situation.

 

Some fighting styles using bouncing-type footwork to maintain mobility with twisting of the body to generate power.  This does allow for some mobility and power, but not enough root is maintained with the high stance to extract the most power from the technique.  Other styles may use low stances, usually moving into a deep stance and striking at the end of the movement.  While a deep stance offers a great deal of root and potential for power if done properly, the following movement after the rooted stance is usually slower to transition into and execute.  If the strike does not land, further evasion may prove difficult and leave you open to counter-attacks. Our footwork utilizing the Dragon Posture allows us to strike and move continuously.  We have the unique ability to maintain root and mobility simultaneously.  This allows us to strike with power while always moving to prevent giving our opponent or his allies an opportunity to attack.

 

All defensive and offensive movements in Ba Gua Zhang must follow the trinity principle of Step + Body + Hand.  The term “Step” encompasses all Ba Gua footwork, while “Body” refers to Yin/Yang movement, Dragon Back, or body movement accompanying the step.  “Hand” refers to anything we are choosing to strike or block with.  This could be the physical hand, elbow, foot, knee, or even a weapon.  The basic idea of this principle is a defensive or offensive technique is not complete if it does not encompass all three parts.  A defense will be most effective when the hand, body, and step are used simultaneously to deal with the attack.  When this trinity is implemented properly, the ability for the opponent to use a follow-up attack is lessened while creating an opportunity for our own immediate counter-attack.  The simultaneous execution of the body, hand, and step during the counter-attack greatly augment the power of the attack.

 

The footwork of the Ba Gua Zhang of Lu Shui-Tian as taught by Master Park consists of two primary components.  The first component we’ll review is circle walking.  Circle walking is literally the practice of walking in a circular pattern utilizing various arm postures, stepping techniques, circle diameters, and changing methods.  Circle walking has a great number of benefits for the Ba Gua practitioner.  It helps develop what is referred to as “light body with rooted step”.  This means the student learns to move quickly and lightly while still maintaining root or stability.  

 

Circle walking is done for long periods of time, usually an hour or more.  This forces the practitioner to learn to develop and maintain a relaxed body, something that is absolutely necessary in practicing an internal martial art.  While stationary and seated meditations create power circulation primarily in the upper body, circle walking creates power circulation through the entire body by engaging all 12 of the Zang Fu meridians in the arms and legs.  The low posture with Lion Step engages the lower Tan Tian and facilitates power circulation of Qi by creating a natural tension/relax rhythm in the Tan Tian itself.  Each arm posture focuses on different Zang Fu meridians by creating natural tension in various places in the arms and hands.  The low posture and properly turned body also strengthens the tendons, ligaments, and joints in the lower body, legs, and feet.  Circle walking is low-impact which prevents damage to those areas, but still drives Qi deep through natural tension/relax rhythms from the walking.  The different diameters of the circle and changes also create different types of controlled stretching and tension on the ligaments, tendons, and joints to strengthen them and increase power circulation of Qi.  

 

Circle Walking with Lion Step

 

Unlike many meditations, circle walking can be considered a “moving meditation”.  This means walking the circle helps the student to learn to focus on the present (or the “Now”) and remove distraction.  It is not advantageous to allow emotion or distraction to be involved during a fight.  The fighter needs to be calm and completely aware of the situation and their surroundings.  Since it’s a moving meditation, walking the circle allows us to develop that awareness and presence while increasing power circulation of Qi.  

 

The Ba Gua Zhang of Lu Shui-Tian uses a Jab, Bridge, Finish methodology to engage and defeat an opponent.  In this case, the “Jab” portion refers to setting up an opponent to initiate contact.  This could be trying to create an opening or cause them to make a mistake we can take advantage of.  The circle is very effective at this.  We can constantly change positions in the available area to upset the opponent’s balance or angle to create an opening for attack.  In relation to the circle, it is not feasible to think you can simply walk complete circles around your opponent and attack or defend at will.  In a real world situation, there is usually neither the time nor space to do this.  What the circle does allow us to do is to prevent the presentation of a stationary target to the opponent, yet still maintain a posture where we can attack or defend as necessary.

 

The “Bridge” portion of the fighting methodology means to close the distance and move inside their door.  Again the circle is helpful here to move around whatever attack we are dealing with to get inside the opponent’s door.  “Finish” involves whatever technique is used to finish the fight.  The circle may be used here in combination with Chin Na, or to simply change direction to escape or deal with the next opponent.  Once the Jab has been executed, the Bridge and Finish will quickly follow to end the fight.  When combined with the footwork, defensive or offensive attacks can all be executed without sacrificing power, mobility, or becoming open to counter-attacks.  They also allow the fighter to be able to deal with further opponents or be in an opportune position for escape.

 

The other main component of Ba Gua footwork is “Ba Feng Gen Bu”, or “8 Direction Rooted Stepping”.  Basic directional stepping and pivoting follows the angles as shown in the following pictures.  Stepping allows the Ba Gua practitioner to move in any of these directions with speed while maintaining root.  We can also pivot to face any of these directions separately or while stepping in another direction.  It is important to realize that in fighting application we do not have to move exactly along equal divisions of 45 degrees.  You move only what is necessary for what you are trying to accomplish.  Ba Gua Zhang follows the principle of short distance/short degree.  In other words, the less distance required for an attack or defense, the faster it is executed.  To move further than absolutely required to execute a technique means it will take longer to finish.  This, in turn, means any follow-up techniques will be executed later.  However, in the beginning we train these base angles to learn the stepping movement.  

 

8 Direction Stepping   8 Direction Pivoting

 

 

All Ba Feng Gen Bu is done from what is called “Dragon Posture”.  Dragon Posture creates a solid, mobile platform where it is easy to jump step or pivot with minimal weight shifting.  This allows for quicker initiation of movement.  To overly weight a single leg makes you less mobile and more vulnerable to attack.  50/50 weighting is more balanced, but you still have to shift your weight to one leg before you can move.  Dragon Posture uses a 60/40 back/front weighting dynamic.  The front leg has light tension forward, while the back leg has light tension backward.  This tension creates a spring-loading effect to propel the person forward. While we can move backwards efficiently in this stance, the emphasis is on lateral or forward movement.  While backward movement has its place, once contact is made a backward motion usually just gives an attacker opportunity to attack again.  Because jump-stepping or full-stepping movement is initiated from the back foot, the 60/40 weighting allows us to move forward or laterally without further weight shifting. This means our stepping, and thus all movement, is executed faster.  But, we are not completely or heavily weighted on the back leg.  That would remove versatility of the stance.

 

         Dragon Posture

 

The pivoting in combination with step is used to defend, counter-attack, or adjust distance from your opponent while simultaneously adjusting angle of attack.   The pivots can be used to augment circular attacks while the jump-steps add power to linear attacks.  The full step and direction changes are also used to change direction and/or move inside an opponent’s door.  Once inside an opponent’s door we can use Ba Gua Zhang’s devastating elbows to finish them.  Whipping Body, Yin/Yang body motion, and the jump-step are all used simultaneously to augment the power of these elbows and create devastating blows to the opponent’s body.  This falls in line with the Step + Body + Hand trinity described earlier.

 

If we refer back to the Jab, Bridge, Finish methodology, the Ba Feng Gen Bu is invaluable in executing this principle.  Once the opening is created, jump-stepping or full-stepping allows us to quickly close the distance, moving past an outstretched arm or leg, to get inside the attacker’s door.  Plus, the augmenting of power of an attack by a pivot or jump-step allows for a more effective finishing technique.

 

The combination of circle plus stepping affords us an unlimited amount of movement as we can move from step-to-step, step-to-circle, circle-to-step, or circle-to-circle at any time quickly and while still maintaining root.  If you examine the diagrams you will notice how the Ba Feng Gen Bu and Circle Walking build on themselves.  From any point, you can pivot in any direction and step.  Or, you can step first and then pivot.  After the initial movement you can chose to step or pivot again into any direction.  In the same manner, you can transition from a circle to a circle of a different radius or direction from any point in the original circle.  Also, you can transition into 8-direction stepping from any point in the circle, or vice-versa.  These combinations are absolutely essential to maintaining mobility when defending against one or multiple opponents.

 

 

Merged 8 Directional Stepping & Pivoting

 

In fighting, we do not want to engage an opponent where his attacks are most effective.  For example, it is not advantageous for anyone to stand within range of an attacker’s kicks and simply defend against them as they are used. To stand in the range of a punch or kick and simply defend against it is inviting your opponent to continue to attack, instead of taking the opportunity to remove their ability to inflict harm.  By using our stepping, we have the ability to move inside the opponent’s range to avoid further attack with their other “weapons”.   It is important to realize that we do not simply just move around an attacking arm or leg to get to the body.  We can attack that limb to prevent the opponent from using it again while moving in.  The subsequent attacks will flow from the first attack or defense, in conjunction with the stepping, to quickly finish the opponent.  Our whipping-body and Yin/Yang body motions allow extremely powerful hits without large body or limb movements.  This, in turn, allows a Ba Gua Zhang practitioner to deliver a great number of hits in a short amount of time.

 

Shifu Park breaks down an attack into three separate phrases.  We’ll use a simple front kick as an example.  When the weight is shifted and the foot initially lifted off the ground to begin the kick, Shifu Park refers to the kick as a “baby” or “child”.  Around the time the knee is fully lifted and the kick is chambered, he refers to the kick as being an “adolescent”.  When the kick is fully extended, it is now an “adult”.  At “adult” stage, the kick is at its most powerful and hardest to deal with.  It is much easier to deal with at the “child” or “adolescent” stage.  Instead of reflexing methods to block a punch or kick at the adult stage, we train to move in on the attack when it first begins.  This allows us deal with it when it has little or no power.  This requires quick Ba Gua stepping, and it requires the practitioner’s defense reflex to include not just hand movement, but equally fast foot and body movement.  We also never move straight into an attack.  This constitutes “force against force” and is against the principles of Ba Gua Zhang.  Moving into the power of an attack will result the defender being injured.  The pivot is combined with the jump step to move us out of the attack’s power line.  The step also puts us at a better angle for the follow-up attack.

 

Both Ba Gua stepping and circle walking require many years of devoted study to understand and master.  These “Diamonds of Ba Gua Zhang” are extremely effective and necessary in dealing with the various aspects of self-defense through Ba Gua.  Hopefully this article has served as an adequate introduction for you as to how they can be used martially and how the function together.  Below are two examples of the application of Ba Fen Gen Bu and Circle Walking for fighting.

 

Ba Feng Gen Bu Defense example: 

 

 

 

 

Step 1:

This example begins with two stationary fighters that are lined up directly across from the other. 

 

 

 

 

Step 2a:

The attacker throws a quick jab beginning an 1-2 punching combination.   The defender pivots 45 degrees and applies a Yin/Yang defense technique to defend against the first punch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2b:

The defender continues by throwing the second part of the Yin/Yang defense technique while stepping in.  The rear hand lands a palm strike to the chest.  This allows the defender to protect himself from the second punch in the 1-2 punching combination.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3:

The defender jump steps through the attacker’s center while delivering an elbow to the chest.  Again, the Yin/Yang body motion, whipping body, and forwarding stepping motion all augment the power of the elbow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes: 

 

Following the diagram, you can see that while step one begins on the bottom line, step two lands 45 degrees to the right while still facing the opponent’s center.  Steps 2a and 2b are executed simultaneously.  They are broken apart above for example purposes.  This execution of the pivot and step at the same time allows for safe defense and effective follow-up attacks.  Step 3 takes the defender through the attacker’s center for the finish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Circle Defense example:

 

 

 

 

Step 1:

Here the defender is circling the attacker.  Even though the movements are lateral to the attacker’s position, the defender’s body and guard are facing the attacker.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 2:

The attacker executes a kick with the back leg.  The defender moves to the outside of the kick with the first step and contacts the leg with the back of the hand to initiate a counter-attack.  Notice the rear hand comes up to cover the face in case the attacker tries to follow the kick with a punch.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Step 3:

The defender’s second step moves along the circle towards the attacker’s center.  The lead hand executes an attack to the head while the now-rear hand begins a throw.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes:

As noted before, we would never simply walk a circle around an opponent.  However, this Yin/Yang circle pattern can be used from quicker lateral, small circle movements, or even from a stationary position.  This above example exaggerates the size of the step of the circle to show you the principles of the defense, and how it fits into the Yin/Yang circle pattern shown here.  Note the dark line creates a Yin/Yang division through the center of the circle.  If you combine with the dotted lines, you’ll see it’s actually two smaller circles inside the larger circle.  So executing this defense actually involves walking a smaller circle inside the larger circle.  This carries the defender around the linear attack and to the opponent’s center.